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Friday, April 14, 2017
Volume 13 • Issue No. 15
Unlikely Marathon Man Runs for Local Charity
Wicker crosses the finish line at last year’s Boston Marathon. (Photo by Rich Wicker)
By Alyssa McArdle, Staff Writer Rich Wicker never expected to be a runner. In fact, only about seven years ago, he had trouble walking. Diagnosed with hydrocephalus, or spinal fluid in the brain, at birth, Wicker has endured seemingly endless health complications as well as 30 surgeries in his 48 years. But next week, Wicker will line up with about 30,000 other runners on Main Street in Hopkinton and begin his second Boston Marathon. “I never thought this was something I’d be able to do,� said
Wicker, who has been a librarian at the Shapleigh Middle School in Kittery for 18 years. He had 12 surgeries in one year when he was five years old, one of which left him partially paralyzed on his left side. Mobility issues continued to plague him throughout his life. In 2001, a spinal fusion surgery went horribly wrong, resulting in an air embolism. Wicker had to have a second surgery immediately to stabilize him. For the next eight or nine years, walking was a struggle. But Wicker was determined to get back on his feet and dedicated long hours to
rehabilitation at the Heart Health Institute (now York Hospital). “I started out on stationary bicycle,� he said. “It was slow and painful. Then I moved onto the next machine. Finally, I was walking on treadmill then running on the treadmill.� This process took eight years. In 2009, Wicker graduated to a membership at Coastal Fitness and saw his endurance flourish. “Once I started at Coastal, I started really getting into better See RUNNER page 5...
Ogunquit Celebrates Patriot’s Day Next Weekend OGUNQUIT Ogunquit will be holding it's 27th Annual Patriot's Day Celebration next weekend April 21-23. Patriots’ Day is officially a commemoration of the first battles of the Revolutionary War: those at Lexington and Concord on April 19, 1775. These battles began shortly after Paul Revere’s famous “Midnight Ride� to Lexington on the night of April 18,
Index
Page
Arts & Entertainment 15-17 Business & Finance 19-22 Calendar of Events 12 Classifieds 40-43 Computer Lady 44 Health & Fitness 23-25 Home & Business 37-39 Library News 10-11 Obituaries 34 Pets 36 Puzzles 46 Real Estate 35,48 Sports 44-45 Where To Dine 26-33
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1775 to warn the minutemen that “the Redcoats are coming!� Patriots’ Day is celebrated only in Massachusetts, Maine, and now Wisconsin (which officially recognized the holiday in 2001) on the third Monday of April, as we continue to keep alive the memory of our forefathers’ dedication to the ideals of freedom and democracy. Ogunquit's Patriot's Day Weekend kicks off Friday at 9 a.m. with a book sale at the Ogunquit Memorial Library. Also visit other area businesses for sales
and specials, such as Bintliff’s Restaurant Fundraising Friday and MaineStreet's 17th Anniversary Celebration. Friday evening will provide an historical re-enactment of General Washington crossing the Delaware River on Christmas night in 1776, as depicted in the famous painting by Emanuel Gottlieb Leutze. If you choose to watch from the shore at Sea Chambers, you can easily join the Fife and Drum Duo in marching back to the Ogunquit Baptist Church to learn more about the musical instruments of
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and scrapbooking at the Ogunquit Baptist Church. Children can partake in Colonial games See PATRIOTS page 3...
CNN Honors Local Mom, Founder of Grahamtastic By Alyssa McArdle, Staff Writer When Leslie Morissette lost her eight year old son, Graham, to cancer 20 years ago, she knew her fight wasn’t over. After a brutal two year battle, she wanted to bring the wisdom she gained to other families fighting serious illness, and help lessen some of the strain on them. She never imagined that her efforts would grow into a nationally recognized organization, Grahamtastic Connection, and that she would be named a 2017 CNN Hero. “Twenty years ago, when we were going through this, the internet was in its infancy,�
Morissette said. Working as a graphic designer at the time, she had the luxury of having a personal computer and internet access via dial-up modem at home. “When my son was diagnosed, the hospitals in Portland and Boston had no internet access for families, making it hard to research what the doctors were telling us. So I’d go home and get online.� Morissette was one of the lucky parents with internet access. She saw others struggle to find information. And she watched as the young patients, including Graham, became See CNN page 4...
Morissette poses with two of her robots. (Photo by Leslie Morissette)
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the Colonial era. The library book sale again starts out the day on Saturday, complimented by a book signing by author Brenda York Goodale
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